Abstract
It has been commonplace to contrast Christian philanthropic charity and modern social rights and welfare provision. Protagonists of social policy reform in the first half of the twentieth century argued for the need to do away with ‘the hat-wearing ladies’, patronage and compassion-based poor relief in order to establish rights-based social welfare as part of the realization of universal citizenship. The possibility of linkages and mutual constitution between religious based charity and modern welfare provision has only been explored in few studies. In this talk, I argue that philanthropic charity cannot be viewed as simply a compassion-driven, religious and pre-modern antecedent. Rather, it developed and modernized in tandem with the emerging welfare state and its establishment of social citizenship.
In Michel Foucault’s seminal work on ‘pastoral power’, the individualized caretaking of the pastorate underwent an expansive diffusion as it was redeployed by a series of secularized caretakers across a range of modern welfare institutions. In Foucault’s account, there are a number of continuities between religious notions of care, compassion and salvation and modern welfare aspirations of securing welfare and guiding the conscience of the citizen. However, Foucault’s somewhat sweeping suggestions need to be explored through more detailed historical investigations which I do by taking a specific philanthropic organization as focus point, The Christian Student Settlement (later The Settlement). The organization was established in late 19th Century London and today it has activities in a number of countries, including England, the US, Canada, Australia and Denmark.
The key question under deliberation is, then, which role social philanthropy has played in relation to modern welfare provision and social rights? Quite diverse interpretations are available on this issue. I do not wish here to take any a priori stance as to whether philanthropic charity plays a depoliticizing or a progressive role in relation social policy and rights. Instead, I leave these questions open for empirical exploration and to be considered in the first instance by taking the story of The Settlement as starting point. We shall trace how the organization shaped and was shaped the process through which welfare arrangements were established in two different national settings, Denmark and the US.
Bio
Kaspar Villadsen’s current research is on the concept of the state and state phobia in Michel Foucaults’ authorship (forthcoming book with Mitchell Dean from Stanford University Press). He is the author of Power and Welfare: Understanding Citizens’ Encounters with State Welfare (with Nanna Mik-Meyer on Routledge 2013). Villadsen’s work has appeared in journals like Economy and Society, Constellations, New Political Science, Organization, and Social Theory and Health.
